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HEALTH
Dental Services (Sunderland)
Mr. Etherington: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what is the registration rate of children aged (a) under four years, (b) five to 10 years and (c) 11 to 19 years with general dental practitioners in the Sunderland health authority area. [4415]
Mr. Malone: The information requested is contained in the table.
| Percentage | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| 4 years and under | 5 to 10 | 11 to 17 | |
| Registration rate | 37 | 81 | 75 |
Excludes patients registered with salaried dentists. Patients aged 18 and over are treated as adults and registered into continuing care.
Dental Services
Mr. Gordon Prentice: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many national health service dentists routinely use amalgam in fillings; and how many use materials developed since the introduction of amalgam. [5572]
Mr. Malone: The information requested is contained in the table.
| Number of dentists(62) | |
|---|---|
| At least one amalgam | (63)13,675 |
| At least one filling in a material other than amalgam | (63)13,016 |
(60) Figures include dentists who claimed in respect of adult and child treatments. However, the majority of child treatments are currently carried out under capitation arrangements. Fillings paid for under capitation arrangements are not reported and are not included in the analysis.
(61) This information is taken from the payment schedule data of one quarter (September-November 1996).
(62) The information presented relates to the number of dentists who made claims for fillings. Dentists claim payment at the end of a course of treatment. These figures thus show the number of dentists who finished courses of treatment in which they performed fillings.
(63) These figures rely on data from a 5 per cent. sample and are therefore estimates.
13 Jan 1997 : Column: 165
A total of 15,249 dentists received a schedule of payment in the period September to November 1996.
Mr. Prentice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, pursuant to his answer of 6 December, Official Report, columns 820-21, on the largest annual NHS payments to dentists, for how many hours work on NHS patients the dentist was paid in each of the years given. [9076]
Mr. Malone:
Dentists are paid item of service fees and a fee for each patient registered with them. They are not paid by the hour.
Mr. Prentice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, pursuant to his answer of 6 December, Official Report, columns 820-21, on the largest annual NHS payments to dentists, how many patients were treated by the dentist in each of the years given. [9074]
Mr. Malone:
The information requested is not held centrally.
13 Jan 1997 : Column: 166
Mr. Prentice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, pursuant to his answer of 6 December, Official Report, columns 820-21, on the largest annual NHS payments to dentists, if he will list the categories of treatment and the percentage of the total NHS fee income for each category earned by the dentist in each of the years given. [9073]
Mr. Malone:
Gross fee payments are made up of the following categories of treatment:
Capitation payments: monthly fees received for each child under 18 registered to cover the cost of "routine" treatments;
Continuing care payments: small monthly fees received for each adult aged 18 and over registered;
Weighted entry payments: one-off payments made in respect of child patients with poor oral health to restore the child's teeth to a reasonable standard;
Adult item of service: payments made in respect of adult treatments;
Child item of service: payments made in respect of mainly advanced child treatment.
| Year | Gross fee earnings(64) | Capitation per cent. | Continuing care per cent. | Weighted entry per cent. | Adult item of service per cent. | Child item of service per cent. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1995-96 | 604,000 | 8.4 | 6.0 | 0.9 | 79.2 | 5.5 |
| 1994-95 | 617,000 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 2.9 | 97.1 |
| 1993-94 | 661,000 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 3.5 | 96.5 |
| 1992-93 | 486,000 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 4.0 | 96.0 |
| 1991-92 | 395,000 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 3.3 | 96.7 |
(64) These have been rounded to the nearest £1,000. Gross fee payments do not account for all NHS earnings.
13 Jan 1997 : Column: 165
Other payments such as maternity, seniority and long-term sickness payments are payable in addition to gross fees.
Mr. Prentice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, pursuant to his answer of 6 December, Official Report, columns 820-21, on the largest annual NHS payments to dentists, if he will list each category of payment which can contribute to NHS earnings. [9077]
Mr. Malone:
The categories of payment are: item of service fees; continuing care and capitation payments; seniority payments; vocational training allowances; maternity payments; long-term sickness payments; postgraduate education allowances; and partial reimbursement of non-domestic rates. These are contained in the statement of dental remuneration. Copies of the latest statement of dental remuneration have been placed in the Library.
Mr. Cousins:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health what guidance he has issued on the availability of sterilisation reversals within the NHS; and what estimate he has made of how many (a) health authorities and (b) GP fundholders will commission such services for their NHS patients. [10284]
Mr. Horam:
The priority given to sterilisation reversal operations generally is a matter for local decision in the light of health authorities' first-hand knowledge of local priorities and competing claims on resources.
13 Jan 1997 : Column: 166
No guidance has been issued specifically on the availability of sterilisation reversals on the NHS. However, information on family planning services generally is contained in "Guidelines for reviewing family planning services" (January 1992) copies of which are available in the Library.
Mr. Kirkwood:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many community, GP or cottage hospitals delivering primary care were operating in each regional health authority area in (i) 1979 and (ii) the most recent year for which figures are available; and if he will make a statement. [9772]
Mr. Malone:
The information requested is not available centrally.
Mr. Ian McCartney:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) how many days of leave he plans to take during the Christmas adjournment; [9791]
Mr. Horam:
I refer the hon. Member to the reply my hon. Friend the Chancellor of the Duchy gave him today.
13 Jan 1997 : Column: 167
Mr. Kirkwood:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many children under 16 years of age were registered with a dentist, in each region, in each year since 1990; and if he will make a statement. [9837]
Mr. Malone:
The data held centrally are for children aged 17 and under and by health authority and, prior to 1 April 1996, family health services authority. Tables containing this information have been placed in the Library.
Sir Roger Sims:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health what estimate he has made of expenditure in the year 1997-98 on research into ME, chronic fatigue syndrome, excluding psychiatric investigation; and if he will list the specific projects. [10263]
Mr. Horam:
Information is not available centrally on expenditure in the national health service on research into chronic fatigue syndrome--myalgic encephalomyelitis. The Department is currently funding a research project through the national health service research and development programme called, "Should GPs manage chronic fatigue syndrome? A controlled trial" and expects to provide a further £6,032 during 1997-98. However, the main agency through which the Government support biomedical and clinical research is the Medical Research Council. It always welcomes high-quality applications and these are judged in open competition with other demands for funding, and awarded according to their scientific quality.
(2) how many days leave he has taken in the Easter, Whitsun and summer adjournments; and how many days leave he took during the time in which Parliament was prorogued this year. [9790]
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